Pirates' Russell beat the odds, lived healthy soccer career

Thursday

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Luck, it seems, almost always ends up on Drew Russell’s side.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Luck, it seems, almost always ends up on Drew Russell’s side.

Russell beat the odds when he was fighting for his life as a baby born 2 1/2 months premature 22 years ago. He found good fortune in two adoptive parents who provided him care and so much more. And he expects more favorable fortune to follow him as he makes his case he’s worthy of a contract with a professional soccer team either domestically or overseas.

Russell is a center defender with the Panama City Beach Pirates of the Premier Development League. The Pirates host Southeast Division rival Southwest Florida on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. at the Mike Gavlak Sports Complex. Russell is a key component of a Pirate defense that has allowed three goals in four games and spurred the team’s 3-1 start.

Playing for the Pirates for a second consecutive season, Russell’s soccer career literally took a scenic route to Bay County. He has played soccer all over the world, traveling to Germany, Japan, Canada and countless U.S. cities.

His is an enviable career for any burgeoning soccer player, to be sure. Russell recognizes that he is fortunate to be living it.

Born prematurely in Fort Worth, Texas, Russell entered the world with a host of medical problems. Russell said doctors explained to his natural mother that “I was most likely not going to be able to make it.”

“One of the reasons my birth mother wanted to give me up for adoption is because I would have all these medical problems,” he continued. “I could be blind or be handicapped, and she wouldn’t be able to afford to take care of me. So she put me up for adoption.”

Though the medical issues were slow to subside, Russell’s fortunes changed for the better the moment Brad and Amy Russell adopted him, just five days after his birth.

“They found me, and they fell in love with me,” Russell said. “The doctors told them about all of my problems. My parents thought God has a plan for me. Whether I make it through alive or if I’m handicapped, they wanted to take me either way.

“I spent a month in the hospital with all these procedures, but I made it out alive. It’s unheard of for me to be healthy and to play soccer and do what I’m doing today. People from the hospital today still remember my story and are amazed I’m able to run around and play soccer and do what I love.”

Russell, who said he still has heart problems related to his premature birth, continued to struggle with his health in the weeks and months after he arrived at his new home.

“One time I was at my aunt’s house, and my parents went out for a date,” he said. “My aunt walks into to the room and finds me not breathing. She was about to go to sleep for the night. Luckily she came in and checked in on me. I was only a few months old, maybe 9 months old. There were a few of those types of situations that happened.”

He said soccer, a sport he has played since he was 4, has contributed to his improved health as he’s gotten older.

“I had some heart problems and still do to this day, but it’s nothing major,” he said. “Luckily I play soccer and stay healthy and eat the right foods and stuff. Every now and then my heart starts hurting. But most of the time I am 100 percent healthy. It’s amazing I’m able to make it out there.”

Shortly before the Russells relocated from Texas to Mount Vernon, Iowa, Russell said his family came out on the losing side in a court battle involving the custody of his adopted brother, Levi. Russell was not quite 5 years old at the time.

“He was with our family for two years before his parents wanted to take him back,” Russell said. “We had to go to court and then drop him off. His parents just changed their minds, and the court was on their side. It was a tough situation.

“... My mom is a very strong woman and all about her Christian beliefs. She believes kids, not just those here in the U.S. but those in other countries, deserve the American dream and life. If she can provide that, she will. My parents are givers. They love to give and help out. ... They fell in love with the Ethiopian culture. One of her best friends from Ethiopia. They didn’t think they’d end up with 10 kids all together, but it ended up that way.”

The Russells did not remain dismayed, however, and they continued to adopt children and add to their family. They didn’t stop until 11 children in all had been adopted, six of them from Ethiopia.

Mount Vernon, an agriculture-centric community located in eastern Iowa, is a quiet town of fewer than 4,000 residents. It’s fair to say that the Russell household stood out from most.

“Everybody in the town knows about our story and our situation with my parents adopting Ethiopian kids from Africa,” Russell said. “Everybody wants to help and be a part of it. In Mount Vernon, everybody just gets behind us and supports our family, the Ethiopian heritage and us kids in general.”

Russell said his family hosted annual Ethiopian dinners in Mount Vernon, a culturally significant event in the community that attracted 150 people each night on weekends over a three-week span. He said the dinners raised money for the New Life Orphanage in Ethiopia’s capital city, Addis Ababa.

“They did it for eight years straight, and last year was the first year they didn’t do it,” Russell said. “All the Ethiopian kids have gone off to school and gone off to college and are living their lives. There are no Ethiopians left. They wanted to do it themselves, but it wouldn’t be the same without my sisters there from Ethiopia. It’s kind of a sad thing that it stopped.

“... (Guests) will give whatever they can, whatever donation they can. From all over the state of Iowa, Ethiopians would come in and support us to be part of the experience. Sometimes it was outside, sometimes it was inside, but you’d always get a good Ethiopian experience. My sisters lived in Ethiopia when they were 15, 16 years old. They know how to make all the food.”

Soccer was the galvanizing force that brought together siblings from cultures that couldn’t have been any more different, Russell said.

“The Ethiopians, when they got here, couldn’t speak any English at all, but all we had to do was put a ball in the back yard and put the goals up, and everyone knew how to play soccer,” he said. “My mom is one smart lady, and she helped the Ethiopian kids a lot to learn English. The best part is that all the Ethiopians all had siblings in the same grade. We would help them out and see each other at recess.

“Sometimes it was hard. Obviously with that many kids and so many of them new, there would be fights that break out. But our parents disciplined us pretty well, and we all knew fighting was not the way to go. Overall I would just say the circumstances, we dealt with them pretty well. It was awkward at first, but once the Ethiopians got the hang of it and got used to what it was like to live in America, it was smooth sailing from there.”

At the age of 16, Russell knew he wanted to pursue a soccer career. He was presented with an opportunity to try out for three club teams in Germany, and he traveled overseas for a month and a half. Russell admitted he may not have been mature enough for the venture.

“I was young at the time, and the situation was really tough,” he said. “Right away I got homesick. I had some French guy trying to teach me German, and it was not easy for me to pick it up.”

Russell, however, parlayed that trip into residency with the Vancouver Whitecaps organization north of the border in British Columbia. He was met with another case of culture shock upon his arrival there, but the opportunities afforded him in Canada were too much to overlook.

“The training was top-notch, and I learned so much,” he said. “I made trips to Europe, to Japan, all these great places. I was very, very lucky to be in that residency program. ... Soccer just takes you all around the world. Soccer’s been the thing all my life. It’s what I love to do. I see friends move on to the next level, and it’s something I plan on doing as well.”

With considerable experience behind him at an early age, Russell thought he earned a roster spot when he tried out for the U20 club team within the Chicago Fire organization, which also boasts a team in Major League Soccer.

“It was kind of weird because I thought for sure I’d made it,” he said. “I was just in Germany, but I guess the coaching staff just didn’t need me.”

After detouring through the Crossfire Academy in Seattle, Russell tried out again with Chicago and earned a spot on the Fire’s U20 team. He played there for two years, but he couldn’t convince management to award him with a professional contract.

“It was a good situation being able to train with the pro team day in, day out, and get professional training,” Russell said. “I was hoping to get a contract with them, but it was not in the cards.”

Russell said he is compiling video footage from Pirate games this season, and he will distribute that footage to various professional teams in hopes of earning a tryout.

“It could possibly be Europe for me, or I could get a contract in the states,” he said. “I definitely have plans to move on after this.”

There is little reason to doubt that Russell’s life experiences have prepared him for the journey — and for luck to follow him on the way.

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